The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Prunus avium and will be referred to hereafter by its cultivar name, ‘SPC103’. ‘SPC103’ is a new cultivar of sweet cherry tree grown for fruit production.
The new cultivar of Prunus arose from a breeding program conducted by the Inventor at a research centre in Summerland, BC, Canada with the goal of developing a new cultivar of cherry tree that would extend the harvest season with fruit that was firm and well-sized with good stem pull retention and flowers that were self-fertile.
‘SPC103’ originated as a seedling that arose from seed planted from open pollination of ‘Sweetheart’ (not patented) in 1984. ‘SPC103’ (breeding ref. No. 13S-21-23) was selected as a single unique tree in 1991 from amongst the resulting seedlings.
Asexual propagation of the new cultivar was first accomplished by budding onto Prunus avium rootstock by the Inventor in Summerland, BC, Canada in 1997. Asexual propagation by budding has determined that the characteristics of the new cultivar are stable and are reproduced true to type in successive generations.